Trying to navigate our healthcare system feels about as rewarding as a mouse traveling a maze in the hope of some cheese. And because our system is a convoluted puzzle wrapped in an enigma placed in a labyrinth, we're all tired of trying to figure it out and get the cheese.
Thankfully, Elisabeth Askin and Nathan Moore, two industrious medical students motivated by "their own anxiety about the future," have written The Health Care Handbook, a 175-page manual or guide to the US healthcare system and the policies (e.g., the Affordable Care Act) that will change it.
In a New York Times article, Dr. Pauline Chen shares her thoughts on the book. "It's the kind of book to share not only with your doctors and colleagues, but with your friends and Aunt Dorothy, too," she writes.
For example, they explain the Affordable Care Act using a series of questions. In the process Ms. Askin and Mr. Moore distill the law's more than 2,000 pages… down to one of the best explanations I've seen. It can be read in under 20 minutes.
The book is primarily an e-book (to facilitate quick editing and updating), and it's incredibly affordable, with a $7.99 list price on Amazon.com. I know I intend to download it.
Finally, there will be a paperback edition available by summer's end, and there are plans to offer videos and other supplemental materials.
Has anyone in the community read this yet? What are your thoughts? Is it something you benefited from reading? Would your patients benefit from a copy?
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